PALMETO, Fla. (WFLA) — The Florida Legislature is considering several bills that could ease current gun restrictions across the state. During a stop at Seaport Manatee, the governor discussed his push to loosen current gun laws.
“I think I am certifying people’s second constitutional amendments,” DeSantis said.
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Governor Back House Building 759 can purchase a long gun or rifle that drops from 21 to 18 years old. The bill is currently in the committee stage before it reaches the floor.
“You have a 20-year-old Marine carrying firearms to Fallujah, where I was on my day. It’s not a match for the due process,” DeSantis said.
It was the law that followed the mass shootings at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland before the governor took office. Republicans just moved forward with the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee bill this week.
American gun owners and Louis Valdez spoke to the committee in support of moving the bill forward.
“The situation in Parkland was a significant government failure, not gun control. Gun control doesn’t solve anything,” Valdez said.
The Women’s Voters League and Fiona Shannon are opposed to the bill.
“Science and common sense tell us that the human brain is not fully developed at age 18. Young adults are more impulsive and more likely to take risky behaviors. And in some cases, they are more susceptible to radicalization,” Shannon said.
Democrats on the committee opposed the bill, but they still went ahead.
The governor also supports House Bill 31, which allows open carry.
“If you take off your jacket, put on a jacket and have a firearm in your holster, somehow, it’s an “open carry” and it doesn’t make sense, so you can get charged against it,” DeSantis said.
Changes have been proposed previously to facilitate restrictions. They stalled or failed because there weren’t any state senators on board in many cases.
Republican Senate President Ben Albritton, who represents parts of Polk and Hardy counties, previously opposed the Open Carry Act and has decided whether to help reduce age to buy longer guns.
This is not the first time the governor has publicly advocated relaxing restrictions. In 2023, the governor signed the bill, allowing some Floridians to carry hidden weapons without permission.
The governor announced $2 million in Seaport Manatee state grants as he was in Manatee County on Friday. It is to support paved roads and stormwater projects while the port works to expand.
